NEW YORK (Ticker) -- Wally Szczerbiak had a nearly perfect
homecoming against the New York Knicks.

Szczerbiak, a native of nearby Long Island, scored 25 points on
9-of-11 shooting and Kevin Garnett had 12 points and 15
rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves snapped a 10-game losing
streak at Madison Square Garden with a 98-77 thrashing of the
Knicks.

Neither Szczerbiak nor Garnett played in the fourth quarter.

Szczerbiak capped a 17-1 run with a 3-pointer that gave
Minnesota a 49-27 advantage with 2:16 remaining in the second
quarter. The Timberwolves led, 56-37, at halftime and between
17 and 35 points thereafter.

"We got into a nice rhythm and quite simply we were able to
shoot the ball well," Szczerbiak said. "It was a solid victory.
The Knicks got a little confused on a couple of sets and
because of that their switching wasn't as quick as we're used
to seeing from the Knicks, so we took advantage and hit some
big shots."

It was just the Wolves' second victory in 13 attempts at the
Garden. Minnesota's only prior victory in New York came on
January 16, 1991.

"I like playing here," Szczerbiak said. "I've seen my share of
Knick games here. It was nice to have the support of my family
and friends, but certainly this is not the type of Knick team
I'm used to seeing."

Minnesota, which won for just the fourth time in 13 games, shot
48 percent (37-of-77) while limiting New York to 39 percent
(26-of-66) with an effective zone defense.

"We don't have the same defensive team we had last year because
of personnel," Knicks coach Don Chaney said. "That's a big
difference. We were known for our good defensive team but we
don't have the same players. We lost Larry Johnson, who was
probably our best defensive player. We also lost Marcus Camby,
our second best."

The Timberwolves manhandled the Knicks on the boards, 46-31,
and had more points in the paint (34-24) and second-chance
points (16-9).

"They killed us on the boards," Chaney said. "They kept getting
second shots. We had a lack of energy and aggression. We've
been very inconsistent."

Knicks star Latrell Sprewell was held to just two points on
1-of-8 shooting in 37 minutes. He did not score until 10 1/2
minutes remained in the contest.

"I didn't feel good out there, but I hate using that as an
excuse," Sprewell said. We still had good looks. It just wasn't
going down. I just wasn't there defensively. Offensively I just
turned the ball over early, nothing went right."

Lavor Postell scored 18 points and Kurt Thomas 15 for New York,
which was playing without Allan Houston, who sat out his third
straight game with a sprained left ankle.

"I want to give them credit, they played a great game," Postell
said. "We didn't play a good defensive game. They had a lot of
open looks and made baskets."

"Just knowing the situation that Allan Houston is not playing
and from the standpoint that we knew Spree was sick, we knew
that might hurt them," Minnesota coach Flip Saunders said. "We
are coming off where we have actually been playing good the
last three or four days. We are starting to play with more
confidence."

With the victory, Minnesota moved within a one-half game of
Portland for the fifth playoff spot in the Western Conference.

"I think we're definitely playing better, but we need to be
playing our best come playoff time, and that's what we're
moving towards," Minnesota guard Chauncey Billups said.

The Knicks, normally an outstanding home team, fell to 18-19 at
the Garden this season. Though the game was officially the
team's 428 consecutive sellout, many seats were empty and those
who did attend rained boos upon the Knicks for much of the
final three quarters.

"I feel bad for everyone, especially when you go through a
tough game like that," Sprewell said. "You hate it for the
fans, everything -- it was just a poor performance."